Many countries require some form of local representation, whether at the board level or at a lesser level, for example a tax representative or an individual authorised to receive official notices on the company’s behalf. Even where company law does not require a resident director, there are often practical reasons for having one. For example, some corporate tax systems require the directors to be registered for tax and have the right to work in the country, and banks in some countries have similar requirements.
Other regimes require resident directors as part of a licensing process, Singapore, despite its modern company law system, is one of the main surprises in maintaining a resident director requirement when similar jurisdictions like the UK and Hong Kong have no such need.
Some countries impose an intermediate residence requirement for directors, with Ireland and Norway both requiring a director resident in the European Economic Area (EEA). This gives businesses with existing European operations a way to expand without unnecessarily increasing management overhead, while giving authorities some oversight on the directors based in the Single Market.
Why are resident directors still required?
In today’s communication age, the reasoning for requiring a local director is more than simply having an available point of contact. By having at least one person holding a position of responsibility in the country, the government has greater recourse if the company or its management do something wrong. It is therefore important that the resident directors are professionals with a good understanding of local company law. Similarly, the companies who hire them must provide the local director(s) with enough information to carry out their roles as required by law.
When Healy Consultants Group provides resident directors for our clients across the world, we therefore vet the appointees to ensure their qualification for the role, while putting in place an agreement with the client that ensures adequate access to company information.
Appointing a resident director through Healy Consultants Group
Our company understands that clients are wary of giving partial control of their business to someone unknown to them. To help put our clients at ease, Healy Consultants Group collects detailed due diligence on the directors we provide. As the director is appointed solely to meet the local legislative requirements, the agreement made between the resident ensures that the director follows the client’s instructions while meeting their legal obligations.
To learn more about countries that require resident directors, or to enquire about appointing a director for any country in the world, contact our experts at .
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